Despite heading off to Equatorial Guinea for the African Cup of Nations this month, the future of Swansea City striker Wilfried Bony continues to be a hot topic.

The Ivorian, 26, has hit nine goals in 20 appearances for the Swans this season, and despite mounting interest, it was expected that his commitments to the Ivory Coast in the African Cup of Nations would put an end to the rumours.

That hasn't been the case though, with new speculation regarding his future emerging every other day of late - and tonight is no different.

According to The Telegraph, powerful striker Bony has told Swansea that he wants to play for a Champions League club, and that he doesn't want the Swans to stand in his way if a bid does come in.

City remain the favourites for Bony's signature amid something of a striker crisis at the Etihad Stadium after injuries to Sergio Aguero, Edin Dzeko and Stevan Jovetic, but they aren't alone in chasing the former Vitesse Arnhem striker.

Speculation over the weekend suggested that Bony's former international team mate Didier Drogba had told his Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho to snap up Bony for £30m.

Real Madrid have also been linked with a move for Bony given that they have little cover behind Karim Benzema, and Tottenham's influence in this particular transfer race appears to be dwindling given the financial clout of the other three teams in the race.

That's a disappointment for Mauricio Pochettino - unless Bony holds out until the end of the season and Spurs can sneak into the top four. Not all hope is lost, but they now appear to be outsiders in the race for one of the Premier League's deadliest strikers.

Olly Dawes

Olly is a Sports Management graduate and aspiring journalist, with most of his work surrounding football or NFL. He has formed two of his own sites, as well as contributing to a number of others before starting with Here Is The City.